Hillsborough inquests: Hospital 'delay' for victim Carl Lewis

Carl Lewis, 18, was in the Leppings Lane end of Hillsborough stadium, where the crush happened

It took nearly an hour to take one of the victims of the Hillsborough disaster from the stadium's terraces to hospital, the inquests have heard.

Carl Lewis was an 18-year-old labourer from Liverpool and father to an 11-month-old daughter.

The jury at the inquests has been hearing evidence about his final moments on the day of the 1989 tragedy.

Ninety-six fans were fatally injured in the terrace crush at Liverpool's FA Cup semi-final against Nottingham Forest.

The inquests, sitting in Warrington, Cheshire, have entered a new phase, hearing the stories of the individual victims on 15 April 1989.

Mr Lewis, whose family wanted the court to refer to him as Carl, had travelled to Sheffield with his two brothers and friends.

He only got a seat on the coach because somebody had dropped out.

Ninety-six football fans died as a result of the crush at Hillsborough stadium in Sheffield

Carl bought a ticket outside the ground and entered through the Leppings Lane turnstiles shortly after 14:30 before heading to central pen three, the jury heard.

Derek Richards, a Liverpool fan who was also inside that section, told the jury he caught a brief glimpse of Carl, who "seemed to be in discomfort".

Mr Richards said the look on Carl's face suggested he could not move and was "gasping for air".

The jury was then shown footage of him lying on top of a pile of bodies at the front of the pen.

More footage was shown of him being carried towards pen two at 15:28.

Another witness, retired police sergeant Paul Gardener, told the court he provided CPR to a young man fitting Carl's description, with the help of an off-duty nurse.

Mr Gardener said: "I believe we stopped when the nurse probably mentioned that there was no point in going on any further."

Mr Gardener then helped carry Carl on a makeshift stretcher out of the stadium and into a service road.

Carl was then attended to by at least two separate ambulance officers.

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Phillip Boyce, from South Yorkshire Metropolitan Ambulance Service, said when he first saw Carl "there was no obvious sign of life at all".

He added: "He appeared to have died but then we attempted CPR."

Peter Howes, a paramedic from the Derbyshire Ambulance Service, also tried to revive Carl.

His ambulance arrived at the Leppings Lane end of Sheffield Wednesday's ground at 15:54.

By that time Carl was "very pale" and turning blue, Mr Howes said.

A doctor then approached him and said "he's young, let's give him a chance".

Mr Howes accompanied Carl to hospital and said that throughout his time with him, he showed no "signs of life".

But former PC Alan Wadsworth said when he was helping to load Carl into the ambulance, he heard someone say he had a pulse, but he could not remember who said this.

Mr Wadsworth said: "I was certain and still am that I heard a comment about him having a pulse.

"I remember hearing it for definite because it was sort of a little bit of good news, if you like."

The jury heard Carl arrived at the Royal Hallamshire Hospital in Sheffield shortly before 16:20 - about 50 minutes after he was seen being carried from the pens.

Further attempts were made to resuscitate him but his death was confirmed at 17:40.

The court heard two police officers accompanied Carl's father Michael when he identified his son's body at 04:30 the following day.

The inquests are scheduled to resume on Wednesday.